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6th Aviation Regiment (Australia)
The 6th Aviation Regiment is one of the Australian Army's three Army Aviation regiments and was raised on 1 March 2008 to provide air mobility for the Australian Army Special Operations Command. The 6th Aviation Regiment, equipped with S70A Black Hawk helicopters, forms part of the 16th Aviation Brigade and is headquartered at Luscombe Army Airfield, Holsworthy Barracks, Sydney which was vacated by 161st Reconnaissance Squadron of the 1st Aviation Regiment in 1995. History In November 2004, 'A' Squadron of the 5th Aviation Regiment based at RAAF Base Townsville swapped designations with the 171st Operational Support Squadron. The Squadron separated from the 1st Aviation Regiment and was placed under the command of the 16th Aviation Brigade as an independent squadron and was re-designated as the "171st Aviation Squadron" to provide support to Special Operations Command. From December 2006, the Squadron commenced relocating to Luscombe Airfield. In March 2008, the 6th Aviation Regiment was raised following the implementation of a recommendation from the Board of Inquiry into the Crash of Black Hawk 221 and incorporated the 171st Aviation Squadron. In November 2009, the Australian Army transferred all fixed wing surveillance aircraft to the Royal Australian Air Force. 173rd Surveillance Squadron subsequently re-equipped with the Kiowa Light Utility Helicopter and re-roled as an Advanced Training Squadron for future Tiger ARH and MRH 90 Taipan pilots and was re-designated as the "173rd Aviation Squadron" based at Luscombe Airfield. In 2013, the Squadron converted to Black Hawk helicopters. Structure The regiment comprises: *6th Aviation Regiment Headquarters (Holsworthy Barracks, Sydney, New South Wales) **171st Aviation Squadron **173rd Aviation Squadron **Support Squadron Operations Notable operations include: *Operation Queensland Flood Assist (2011 disaster assistance in South East Queensland) *2012 support to PNG elections Current Aircraft The regiment was planned to transition to the MRH 90 Taipan, an Australian variant of the NHI NH90, with the Black Hawk to be withdrawn from service by December 2013. However, the MRH 90 Program encountered significant problems, and in particular, the NH90 had not been operated in a dedicated special operations role, delaying the withdrawal with the Chief of Army extending the service of 20 Black Hawks to 2022. The MRH 90 will be introduced to the regiment in February 2019 starting with two aircraft under Plan Palisade which will require the development of a fast roping, rappelling and extraction system (FFRES), gun mount capable of firing the FN MAG58 machine gun and M134D minigun, and new cargo hook. Future acquisitions Light helicopters are planned to be acquired for the regiment to enable special forces to insert, extract and provide fire support for small teams of special forces undertaking tasks ranging from tactical observation through to counter-terrorism missions, or hostage recovery, that are optimised for operating in dense urban environments and can be deployed in the Boeing C-17 Globemaster. Project Land 2097 Phase 4 announced in the Defence White Paper 2016 will see at least 16 light helicopters acquired with deliveries commencing in 2022. See also * British Joint Special Forces Aviation Wing * Canadian 427 Special Operations Aviation Squadron * French 4th Special Forces Helicopter Regiment * Italian 3rd Special Operations Helicopter Regiment * [[160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment (Airborne)|U.S. 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment – Night Stalkers]] References Category:Aviation units and formations of the Australian Army Category:Military units and formations established in 2008